44-year-old Mevlüt Sağır, who lives in Hıdırbey village of Samandağ district, produces Defne soap using traditional methods. Sağır, who beats the fruits of the laurel tree with a mallet after the careful harvest in October, November and December, produces soap with gram-by-gram measurements. Laurel soap used by the local people; While it is good for eczema and dandruff and gives relief to hair and skin, it is sold for 450 TL.
Saying that laurel soap is obtained from the fruit of the laurel tree, Mevlüt Sağır said, “Bay soap is made from the fruit of the laurel tree. We harvest these fruits in October, November or December.
We cook the grains in a large cauldron; after cooking, they absorb their water well. After draining the water, we beat them with pestles until they separate from their shells. After removing the shell, we add some water and boil it again.
“After boiling, when it reaches 100 degrees, the oil of the laurel in it rises to the top and is taken from the water surface with thin containers, this is how we obtain the oil,” he said.
THERE ARE PEOPLE USING LAURAL OIL IN THE COSMETICS AND PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRY
Stating that laurel oil is a laborious job that requires fine workmanship, Sağır said, “This oil is used in many places; there are people who use it in cosmetics and the pharmaceutical industry. In our region, we make it as soap. It is a laborious and demanding job, you need to be very careful, gram. It should be measured in grams.
If it doesn’t work, it will take longer and cause trouble. We bake about 20 a month until the weather stays cool.